From the Inside Out

On our last day in Israel, we explored the Old City of Jerusalem and walked down the famous Via Dolorosa (the path that Jesus walked as He was led out of the city to be crucified).

Streets of the Old City

Beginning of the Via Dolorosa, the way of suffering

One of the spots where Jesus fell on the way to the cross

Church of the Holy Sepulchre — according to Catholic tradition, this is the spot where Jesus was crucified. And of course, they’ve built a huge shrine to worship the spot. For pictures inside the church, check out my Israel photo albums.

Our next stop was the Mount of Olives where Jesus would go with His disciples to pray. This is the view of Jerusalem from the Mount of Olives. The short trees in the foreground are all olive trees.

A bit farther down on the Mount of Olives is the Garden of Gethsemane — also full of olive trees. This one is over 400 years old.

Across the valley from the Mount of Olives is the field that Judas bought after betraying Judas. On the hill where we were standing was also the location of Caiphus’ palace and the cells where Jesus was held when He was imprisoned. After visiting these locations, we ended our tour with lunch at a local restaurant. Since Gary and I were sick of the awful food they feed to the tour groups, we ditched the group and headed back to the Old City for a decent meal.

A restaurant in the armenian quarter of the Old City…cheeseburgers and french fries…yum!

After lunch, we went shopping in the old city and met up with others from our group to do more exploring and shopping.

It was our last night in Jerusalem, so we headed to Ben Yeduda Street for our final meal. We had dinner at a little Italian food restaurant, and then walked back to our hotel to pack. Our bus was departing at 1:00 am for the airport. We would spend the better part of Sunday on the plane traveling back to Dallas. Even though the ride was long, it was completely worth it. If you ever have the chance to experience Israel, take it. You won’t regret it!

On Friday, we ventured outside of Jerusalem to visit some of the “dead” tourist attractions — the Dead Sea Scroll caves, the Dead Sea, and Masada (site of a mass suicide).

On the way, we traveled through the mountains surrounding Jerusalem. Many Bedouins still live in these mountains today. The picture above shows a temporary Bedouin settlement. Our tour guide indicated that Bedouins will settle for a few months and then move on — such an interesting and intriguing way to live.

The barren mountains outside of Jerusalem

Qumran, an archeological site in the West Bank near the caves where the Dead Sea Scrolls were found.

One of the eleven caves near Qumran where Dead Sea Scrolls and other religious texts were discovered.

View of the Dead Sea, mountains of Jordan, and ultralights flying overhead

Area where David went to hide from Saul

The Dead Sea!

You can see the city of Masada on top of the mountain. It was originally a retreat for Herod the Great, but it was later taken by Jewish rebels who were fighting against Roman rule. It was the last Jewish stronghold when the Romans conquered the rebels. To get into the fortress, the Romans built a ramp on the back of the mountain so they could access the city. Instead of being taken captive alive, all of the rebels committed suicide.

Ruins of Masada — a city capable of supporting 1,000 soldiers for 3 years. Herod had a great palace located here, a spa, and synagogue.

The ramp that the Romans built to re-take the city of Masada

Swimming in the Dead Sea — without a doubt, it was one of the most fun and memorable experiences of the entire trip. You literally do not have to lift a finger to float in this water. It’s amazing and SO MUCH fun!

Our last stop of the day (or night) was the city of Jericho. We traveled through it on the bus and stopped at the bottom of this mountain. The green area shown in this picture is where people think Jesus went to be tempted in the desert. Now, a monastery sits on the site.

For more pictures of our trip, be sure to check out the Israel albums in the photo section of blog.

Day five brought our first full day in Jerusalem, and I don’t think we could have possibly packed more into the day than we did. It was amazing. Words fail to express how I felt walking through the city and experiencing its historic past. Truly astounding.

Our first stop of the day was the Temple Mount and the Dome of the Rock, which is built on the area where Jewish people believe the “holy of holies” was located. The “holy of holies” is where the Ark of the Covenant was kept in the first Temple, and it’s an area which can be entered only by the High Priest on Yom Kippur. As such, Jews are still forbidden from entering this area. Since they don’t know the exact location of the “holy of holies,” they do not want to accidentally walk through it, even today. The still consider it a holy place that should only be accessed by the High Priest.

Outer wall of the temple mount, and the remains of the area where the priests and people entering the temple area would go to be cleansed before entering the temple.

The Dome of the Rock, built on the temple mount where the first temple (built by Solomon) stood and where the temple was located in Jesus’ time

The Eastern Gate — this is where Jesus will enter and the steps He will walk when He returns. What else can I say — wow!

Ruins of the Pools of Bethseda

The church at the Pools of Bethseda. Our group sat down in the church and began to sing. It was an amazing experience. The voices of a few filled the entire room, and the acoustics made it sound like a full choir. It was a beautiful and magical experience.

Our next stop took us to Golgatha — the place of the skull. Can you see it? They believe Jesus was crucified near this spot.

The garden tomb, many believe this is the tomb where Jesus was buried after the crucifixion. After visiting the tomb, our group met for a sacred time of communion and consecration led by Pastor Rigdon. It’s a moment in time that I’ll never forget.

The ruins of the ancient city of David

The exit of the Holocaust museum, a very sobering part of our day. No pictures were allowed inside the museum. After visiting the museum, we went back to our hotel for a quick dinner and then our tour continued at 10 pm that evening

We toured around the city at night and stopped for a few photo opps. This is a view of the wall surrounding the temple mount. You can see the Dome of the Rock in the middle. If you look closely, you can also see the steps on the right leading to up to the wall. Jesus would have walked on those steps as He entered the temple.

Back inside the temple mount area, we toured underneath the wall to see some of the ancient areas that have been exposed by excavations. There are a series of tunnels under the wall, and some of the areas are near where they believe the “holy of holies” was originally located. Many orthodox men and women go here to pray (in separate areas of course). The picture shown above displays the remains of an ancient Roman marketplace area. The original Roman road — from Jesus’ time — is also exposed here.

After our underground tour, we stopped to pray at the wailing wall. It was a little after midnight when we stopped. As you can see, the place was packed. The picture above shows the area where the men pray. Men and women have separate prayer areas at the wailing wall. The women’s area was much smaller, but equally crowded. Women would pray and travail in tears, some holding prayer books and others placing notes in the wall. Once their prayers were finished, they would back away facing the wall, never turning their back on it. It was a sign of respect and devotion.

The wailing wall was a perfect ending to a perfect day. I couldn’t have asked for more, and I will remember that day forever. I am so blessed to have been able to experience it.

Day four gave us our first glimpse of Jerusalem. We left Tiberias early and journeyed towards the city. On the way there, we saw fewer palm trees and more desert terrain.

Shepherds tending to their flocks — just like David did thousands of years ago

Camel rides at the rest stop

Kidron Valley and the city of Jericho

First glimpses of Jerusalem!

Rabbi crossing

Shepherds near the city of Bethlehem

View of Bethlehem

Waiting to see the area where — according to tradition — Jesus was born

Checkpoint for entry back into Jerusalem. Palestinians cannot enter the city from this area unless they have a special permit.

The wall separating “area A” from Jerusalem…the graffiti says “to exist is to resist.” I think that says it all.

Model of the city of Jerusalem and the temple in Jesus’ time. Our tour guide took us here to explain the areas we would be visiting and what it was like when Jesus was there. We also saw the Dead Sea Scrolls inside the museum — no pictures allowed.

Finally free from the tour bus, we ventured out into the city at night to explore and find some good food. We were extremely sick of the bad hotel buffets…yuck! This area became one of our favorite spots. It’s Ben Yehuda Street, a pedestrian mall area with great shops and restaurants.

The walls of the Old City of Jerusalem.

Day three began with a boat ride across the Sea of Galilee. What a historic event! Seriously, I can’t believe that I was able to ride across the same body of water that once held vessels filled with the disciples and Jesus. This is where He walked on the water and calmed the storm. This is where He instructed His disciples to cast their nets on the other side of the boat and the nets came up full of fish. Surreal…just surreal.

Our boat

The area of the sea where they believe Jesus may have walked on the water

After the boat ride, we continued our journey to the mountain of beatitudes. This is where Jesus gave the famous sermon on the mount.

Overlooking the Sea of Galilee from the mountain of beatitudes

Traveling farther into the forest area, we stopped at a location where pagan temples where built into the mouth of a cave and the surrounding rock. Many believe this is where Jesus took the disciples when He asked them, “Who do you say that I am?” It makes a lot more sense why He would ask that question when you realize that they were probably standing in front of all of the temples honoring the different pagan gods. He was asking them who He represented, who He was in comparison.

Our next stop was the Banius waterfall. It was gorgeous. The river is fed from springs at the base of Mount Hermon and eventually becomes the Jordan River. So, this is essentially the start of the Jordan.

After visiting the waterfall, we journeyed to Capernum, the home town of Jesus. Many of the ruins are from the time when Jesus walked here and performed miracles. They also have uncovered ruins of what they believe was the first Christian church. Pretty cool stuff!

Walls of the ancient homes in Capernum

Synagogue

The two last stops of the day were (1) the place where Jesus fed the 5,000 with just 5 loaves and 2 fish and (2) the Jordan River. We visited the banks of the Sea of Galilee and had an opportunity to wade around for a bit. A church is built here on the site where they believe the miracle took place. Our Jordan river visit was very symbolic for the entire group. We had a large group of people who were to be baptized or re-baptized in the Jordan river. It was a really neat experience that I’m sure will never be forgotten.

This is what it’s all about.